BROTHER BENJAMIN FEEDING PROJECT:

THANK YOU to all who have supported the feeding project this year.

We have raised approximately £2500 so far. Please remember the three Novices from Zimbabwe who died on Christmas Day last year. ‘Together we can make a Difference’. We have lots of plans for 2023, watch this space...

THANK YOU FROM THE SVP

From Bishop Eton SVP Group: Thank you to all those parishioners and families from the primary school who contributed to our Christmas food bank collection which was very successful. It will make a big difference to many families in our city.

Please note, our next regular monthly collection will be on Sunday 8 January as the first Sunday is New Years Day.

DECEMBER'S POEM - HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL

HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL

"How long, Lord?

How long, Lord, before we see The Messiah?"

Plaintive words echoing through past millenia.

And now, over two thousand years later,

We still wait-

Quite often in childlike expectation -

For the magical story

Of a tiring journey, made by a husband and wife,

Obeying laws and decrees,

To ancestral homeland where a baby was born

In a humble place.

A miraculous star and angelic voices

Led shepherds and even Magi,

To pay their homage to the Christ Child,

 The Messiah, The Redeemer of our world,

Lord of the creatures who kept him warm -

Lying in a manger.

Now, fly swiftly through the intervening centuries.

December 2022,

Our World, sorely in need of Redemption.

Yet, in the midst of downturns and turmoil,

Hope still shines -

Perhaps less brightly than in times gone by -

That The Child of Bethlehem

 Can still bring solace, even happiness,

Love and Peace

Into our homes and hearts.      

Eileen Murray © December 2022

WORKING DOCUMENT FOR THE CONTINENTAL STAGE OF THE SYNODAL WAY ;(THE UNIVERSAL SYNOD)

This document is the fruit of the Syntheses, which resulted from the consultation of the People of God across countries and dioceses in Europe. It is a part of the journey through the first phase of the universal synodal process. It will be the focus of the time of listening, dialogue and discernment of the Continental Synodal Assemblies (January-March 2023).

The document can be found here: https://www.synod.va/content/dam/synod/common/phases/continental-stage/dcs/Documento-Tappa-Continentale-EN.pdf

CAROLLING THANK YOU

Thank you to all those who attended and donated to the carols on Tuesday in aid of YPAS. Over 20 people turned up to sing and we raised a little more than £300 and many leaflets handed out.

Our intrepid carol singers who braved the cold and raised over £300 for YPAS. 

RENEWING CHURCH AND NEIGHBOURHOOD - THE SYNODAL WAY:  PODCAST

https://togetherforthecommongood.co.uk/resources/synod-podcast-series

Synodality means "walking together" and refers to both a new, and ancient, way of being church, based on listening to the Holy Spirit.   Together for the Common Good have released a new podcast series, to support and inspire those travelling on the synodal journey.  Adopting the 'see-judge-act' framework, the podcast is designed for individual reflection or to be within a parish or prayer group setting to prompt conversation and develop action on a local level.

The podcast is also available on Youtube see below

Reflections

The harbinger of Christmas expectations -

November,

The disappearing daylight hours,

The month of reflection and remembrance,

Is born in ghoulish celebrations,

Explodes in bangs and shrieks

Of spectacular, colourful manifestations,

Then fades to solemn reverence.

It is the time set aside by the Church

To pray for those whose earthly ties

No longer physically bind us to our loved ones.

As November crawls through

Ever shortening days and long, dark nights,

We recall and burnish, once again,

The memories of all (combatants and victims)

Who died in the Wars which have scarred our civilisation,

For over a hundred years.

Time, the Relentless Protagonist, moves on.

This Remembrance Sunday, for us and many others,

Will be poignantly different:

No polishing of badges and medals,

No straightening of cherished regimental tie,

No affixing to lapel of blood red poppy,

No faltering walk in camaraderie

Along Liverpool streets,

With those who unfailingly march

To keep alive the memories

Of all who fought and still fight,

For a world, where all have the right

To live in freedom and at peace.

This year -

A nostalgic framed photo, a neatly folded tie,

A poppy, beribboned medals, a maroon beret,

Showing its age but proudly displaying two badges,

And a lit candle - reflecting not only on metallic artefacts,

But on past deeds of bravery and devoted service.

Not, of course, forgetting,

The ascending bouquet of prayers scenting the essence of profound love!

ns -

Eileen Murray ©  11 November 2022

SVP AWARENESS

Maggie Doherty (St Mary’s University) has asked for the following invitation for SVP Taster sessions to be circulated:

Would you like to help out to people in need in your community?

For nearly two centuries the St Vincent de Paul Society (SVP) has been seeking and finding those in need and responding in love. Today, the SVP in England and Wales represents almost 10,000 members across around 1,000 groups. It is rare for one corner of the SVP to encounter a need which has not also been seen and responded to by our members.

Join the movement

This month, you can take part in a range of free online taster sessions, including: ‘care leavers’, ‘end of life companionship’, ’social justice’, ‘holiday camps’, and ‘support for refugees and migrants’. Get involved and turn concern into action! 

To discover more: www.svp.org.uk/discover or email your interest to   If you are aware of a need, please contact us at 

ARCHDIOCESE RESPONSE TO UKRAINE:

#Liverpool4Ukraine and prayers for peace

The fourth consignment of aid for Ukraine travelled last weekend taking dried food, thermal clothing, tools and generators.

#Liverpool4Ukraine trip 4

On the morning of the 17th October after 3 ½ days of driving, our 6 volunteer drivers arrived at the Ukraine border to deliver 3 van loads of essential aid which contained dried foods, building tools and thermal clothing.

The aid was welcomed by  Bishop Gregory Komar, the auxiliary bishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy (diocese) of Sambir-Drohobych in the Lviv region of western Ukraine, and will now be distributed to local people.

During the handover, the drivers spoke to Bishop Gregory who thanked everyone in the archdiocese for their prayers and he shared his appreciation of having us as friends that stand by them in even the most difficult times.

Please pray for peace https://www.cbcew.org.uk/pray-for-peace-in-ukraine/

THE CALL OF CREATION 

On the Feast of St Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of ecologists and animals, the Social Justice Department of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales launched a new edition of its teaching document on the environment – The Call of Creation.

First published two decades ago, in 2002, this new edition is released at the conclusion of the Church’s month-long Season of Creation. The document calls for a “profound interior conversion” and for Catholics to “repair our relationship with God’s creation” to address the current ecological crisis.

Writing in the foreword, Bishop John Arnold, Lead Bishop for the Environment, and Bishop Richard Moth, Chair of the Social Justice department, say:

“We are a people of hope who believe in redemption. We must study the signs of the times and take the action that is needed to repair our relationship with God’s creation. As is made clear in The Call of Creation, the exercise of the virtue of solidarity and the promotion of the common good, which are so needed at this time, are the responsibility of each and every individual and institution in society.”

You can read a copy by clicking here